Little Orphan Annie Oakley

Meet Little Orphan Annie Oakley...A big name for such a little girl! But very fitting..she's an orphan and she's also tough like Annie Oakley. I just hope she's tough enough! Annie and her brother and sister were abandoned in a plastic tub outside the front door of the clinic where I work almost two weeks ago. They were flea ridden and Annie appeared more sickly than her siblings. Several of us at the clinic have cared for the trio: I took on Annie, and another technician took on the other two. Annie's sister was adopted out last Friday but her brother passed away on Sunday. On Saturday, Annie developed the diarrhea that had already begun to affect her siblings and her appetite became decreased. A course of medication and probiotics was begun on Monday, but she seems about the same, and just doesn't seem to be able to sleep curled up and comfortable like she had been doing up until the weekend. However, she definitely has an opinion about the baths she gets to clean up and soothe her little bottom! She growls and spits and looks genuinely annoyed with my deciding she needs a bath. As you can imagine, I have become extremely attached to this little girl. I only hope that she keeps on fighting because I know she will be an absolutely beautiful at if she gets to grow up! Keep her in your prayers!

Chesney loves being outside...

It is beautiful outside, sunny and cool! I have the front door open and the doggie door that the dogs created in my screen door is getting plenty of use this morning. Chesney has spent most of the morning outside by herself. She loves enjoying the fresh air and all the smells. I snapped a few pictures of her. I might add, Chesney is notorious for her "sloppy sits", which probably won't earn her any points in obedience. She did do some nice down and sit stays on the agility table for me, without treats, so I could get a couple more pictures. After I get the yard mowed and get all of our agility euqipment arranged again, I expect we'll practice some agility this afternoon. I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful day!

Dinner with Mom

Mom came out last night and we had a wonderful dinner outside on the patio. I grilled steaks and we had potato salad and cucumbers fresh from my garden. It was a wonderful, cool evening and perfect for outdoor dining! Mom is doing very well after her heart attack scare and spending last weekend in the hospital.

Homemade Agility Equipment

Here are a few examples of the agility equipment I have been able to assemble so far...
A teeter compliments of Cheri, weave poles made with rebar compliments of Nicki, a jump, a hoop, a table and a chute made from odds and ends I found in the barn. Nothing fancy, but they work out quite well and give us something to practice on here at home.

Friday night racing in Bolivar

Another night at the races in Bolivar last night. I'm so glad Bolivar has gone back to asphalt! Last night was a bit disappointing though. It was supposed to be a mid-season championship for the modified class, which should have been a really good race. However, a driver who used to race late models at Lebanon when it was still asphalt and has been a successful dirt racer since decided to show up for the race last night, which had a $600 winner's purse. Of course, he blew the doors off all the drivers who have been there every week and won the money. He even passed inspection in the tech barn afterward. All of the regular drivers were very disappointed and rightfully so. The real race was still between all of them and not the one who was many car lengths ahead of everyone else. I think that championship should have been reserved for only the regular weekly drivers and not someone who hasn't raced there all year. My best friend's brother-in-law won his race in the street stock class though, so there was a good moment.

Gardening...

I am making a huge effort to keep up with the weeds in my garden this year. Seems like there is not enough time in the day by the time I get home from work and take care of all the animals. But, this year, I think I'm doing a great job! so far, I'm getting zucchini and cucumbers, some lettuce, and onions. The sugar snap peas are coming on, and so are the green beans. I've got tomatoes on the vine, but none have turned red yet. Lots of peppers coming on too...I've got green, red, yellow, black, and jalepeno. It's looking quite productive and I have to say, I'm pretty proud of myself this year!

Qualified!!!!

Chesney attended her first ever Rally Obedience trial this weekend in Sedalia. Though I was so nervous my legs were shaking throughout the first exercise yesterday, Chesney did great and got a qualifying score of 90 out of 100 possible points. Although we did not actually place in the class, we are still very proud of her qualifying ribbon. Today, I was more relaxed and Chesney did great again. She scored 85 out of 100 points and got another qualifying ribbon. She got a bit distracted on the side of the ring that adjoined the next ring. In that ring, there were about 10 dogs all on a down stay while their owners were out of the building. Chesney became very interested in why those dogs were all just laying there not doing anything fun and was really not interested in doing her call to front/finish left exercise. She sort of did it finally. The exercise I was most worried about was the halt while the owner walks around the dog. She did that one just fine. Probably thanks to the fact that we've been working on sit and down stays on the table while I walk around it for agility class. So now, she just needs one more leg for her Novice A rally title. We'll be attending the Springfield show in October to hopefully get that done! We went with Nicki, Legend and Zodiac and they all did especially well. We were very proud for them too. Someday, Chesney and I hope to be that good, but we are just getting our start! We are having great fun and that is what matters most! The pictures show Chesney's ribbons and the congratulatory new toys I got her today and a very tired Chesney from all of her big debut weekend activities. Oh, and ignore the dates in the pictures, I forgot to set the date in my camerabefore I took pictures.